


Fancy dinner

by Paru_Cafe



Category: Dangan Ronpa: Another Episode
Genre: F/F, Mention of Togami Byakuya/Fukawa Touko, toukomaruweek2018
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-04
Updated: 2018-07-04
Packaged: 2019-06-05 00:55:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,413
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15158894
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Paru_Cafe/pseuds/Paru_Cafe
Summary: A chase end up in a twisted, cruel child's game: a pretend restaurant.Toukomaru week day 2 - Prompt : Date





	Fancy dinner

**Author's Note:**

> This is written for toukomaru/syomaru week 2018 hosted by candy @toukosmaru on twitter!  
> Day 2 - prompt : date.  
> I'm super anxious, it's really late in my timezone, I didn't spellcheck, English is not my first language, didn't find a beta reader; I did the best I could.  
> I also drew a pic for this -> https://twitter.com/veritewright/status/1014349182096826368  
> I hope you like it. Please leave comments and criticism !

"C'mon, let's play his game. They're still kids at heart!"

"For the last time, I said no!"

Her partner and her were still in Towa City, except that they weren't stuck in it anymore. They both could leave whenever they wanted, however... Business wasn't done in Towa City. Komaru and Touko were still tidying the town and regularly contacted Future Foundation, informing them of the progress they were making and having long discussions on how to handle the Monokuma Kids; still brainwashed, but the controller that would deactivate their helmets was in a safe place. So far, no one had found a suitable answer, and the children were still in danger against the bloodthirsty adults. Leaving like this would feel like abandoning a part of themselves. And Touko knew if she left Towa City now, Komaru wouldn't follow her. A situation which Touko would hate to happen.

If she had to stay in this hellish city for the sake of their friendship, so be it. She wasn't letting go of her first, most precious _best_ friend that easily.

In the aftermath of the Big Bang Monokuma's destruction, a certain peace and quiet filled the town. Not an eerie one, but rather a calm one. A routine took place as Touko and Komaru patrolled the town, gathering clues, took intel from the former Warriors of Hope, meeting and saving adults and Kill List targets.

A routine the children slipped quite easily into.

They both thought the Monokuma Kids would make the Monokumas attack them; but they did not. Monokumas now mainly roamed the streets, fleeing when Komaru appeared at the corner of the street- Beasts Monokumas wouldn't even move when Komaru pointed her weapon at them. The creepy kids' song disappeared, the chanting disappeared, the pillaging stopped. Touko would always jump on her feet and eye them suspiciously at the sight of them, but Komaru, naïve and sweet and caring and _stupid_ would trust them immediately. Wherever they looked, they'd find the Monokuma Kids huddling together, looking afraid even though the mask prevented them of showing any emotion. Wherever Komaru and Touko went, the silent children would let them pass, staring at them without a gesture. Sometimes, they'd even help move things around with the little strength they had if Komaru asked.

Maybe. Despite being brainwashed, maybe- those kids needed that routine. Some peace and silence, some time to hide, after all the crazy stuff that happened in this crazy town.

And yet, Komaru and Touko could tell the kids were growing weaker, thinning out. What could they eat? How long before they all collapsed? The short-haired girl of the two would worry sick, tossing and turning and thrashing the bed they shared in her sleep. Touko very much liked _her_ sleep, so she hated seeing this desolation, this helplessness.

Thus came the suggestion to Komaru that they round up the kids someplace safe. Somewhere where they could list all of them and find a solution in the meantime and surely Future Foundation technology could help them, yeah? It was said on a whim, but Komaru had loved the idea. So much apparently she had squealed and hugged Touko with a vice-like grip, leaving Touko breathless, red in the face and with her glasses askew. Figuring out the method to secure the kids was more complicated. They planned and plotted countless ideas, but they decided the first step they could take was to befriend the Monokuma Kids.

And what better than to befriend a kid to gain their trust, right?

(Komaru would know, Touko thought. Such a normal thing to think, for people who had normal childhoods.)

They started with the kids running the pretend shops where they could buy the weapon upgrades scattered by that white-haired servant. Those were easy - Komaru just had to empty her purse. Not that Monocoins had any real value. Byakuya-sama would scoff at them like the peasant they are. Oooh, Byakuya-sama... calling her a peasant...

_Ahem._

Cough.

Others were more complicated. The kids weren't hostile, but they weren't exactly _nice_ , resulting in lots of (according to Komaru) convoluted riddles and several pranks (involving two-way doors and Touko losing consciousness for the most part after her face would hit those head-first on) where her split personality almost sliced them in tiny neat little cubes with those damned scissors.

It was in that context that around nightime, they had chased after a few kids - stealthily, as Komaru feared they'd remove their helmets if too stressed about that hide-and-seek game. Touko and Komaru had entered a dark alleyway, clutching megaphone and scissors and each other's hand.

Until they found a little shop. Touko had breathed in audible relief as Komaru had approched the wood planks haphazardly nailed together and covered with crude scribbles in colorful crayon. Touko had expected the both of them to immediately leave after Komaru would have glanced at whatever was in 'stock', but instead she had turned around, worrying her lip with her teeth, looking incredibly confused.

"Touko, look at this," she had said. "There's this little bell and I don't know what it does." She pulled one of the little red curtains and lifted a tiny call bell, silver gleaming in the faint light of the dying glowsticks she carried around. There was no sign of any of the children they'd chased. "What should I do?"

Touko had shrugged. "Just leave it alone?"

"No! Call bells just..." Komaru waved her free hand around. "Call to be ringed? I can't leave it without ringing it! That'd be a crime!"

"So you're one of those people who want to press every button they see, even when it's obvious it's a trap, huh?"

"I- It's not like that!" Komaru pouted. "It's just..."

Touko had sighed. "Okay, just be ready in case something happens. Let's just hope it doesn't explode in our faces." She had pulled out her taser and watched as Komaru's evident inner conflict showed in her eyes. Christ, this girl was so easy to read, y-yet... So mysterious and full of surprises sometimes... Ahem. Eventually Komaru made up her mind and she pressed the ring on the call bell, jumping back immediately.

Nothing.

Both frowning, they waited for a sign, anything that'd give out that they triggered a mechanism somewhere; but they heard nothing. Touko tiptoed towards the ring and pressed it again.

_Ding!_

Nothing.

"Phew--" Komaru breathed out in relief, bended forward as if she just ran a marathon. "So that was harmless." She pressed the ring repeatedly, and just when Touko was about to tell her to stop because Jesus was that sound annoying, Komaru continued: "Probably a toy the Monokuma Kid liked. They do that sometimes. Hold mementos. Even though they're brainwashed, maybe they do that as an expression of their personality- WAAAAAAAAAAAHHHH!!!!!!!!"

Her sudden scream had Touko jumping out of her bones. "What are you screaming like that for?!?!?" She realized her glasses fell somewhere and blanched. "Is it a g-g-g-g-ghost?!?!?!"

"Awa- Awawa... awawawa..."

"Komaru, p-please d-don't tell me it's a ghost again. Please, not again, I-I'm not strong enough-"

"Don't creep on people like that!" Komaru had yelled angrily. "I could have hurt you!"

Touko, having found her glasses (they went up her forehead when she'd jumped), slowly blinked when she saw Komaru on her butt, clutching the megaphone to her chest, looking up at a Monokuma Kid who had appeared out of nowhere from the darkness. He wasn't dressed like all of them were- he was wearing an apron underneath his bowtie- the shop 'owner' then- and curiously, had a curly little faux-moustache taped to his helmet. He held a white bath towel and a round iron food tray, like a waiter would.

Komaru, who had gotten back up on her feet, looked at him curiously. "What are you up to? Playing dinner?" She always spoke to the Monokuma Kids, even though they couldn't reply. Touko found that endearing- what, no! Annoying! Y-yeah. "Are you able to eat?"

The child giggled creepily, then bowed deeply. He made a gesture to go this way and follow him. Without looking back at them, he started walking.

Bemused, Komaru and Touko watched him go, before exchanging glances. They knew it wasn't a trap- he would have killed Komaru while she didn't notice him- but what did he have to show? With a nod, they both had started walking and followed him.

He led them into a cul-de-sac, giving in a set-up of cardboard boxes and wooden crates. The biggest of them was in the centre of the street, where a single candle lay lit atop a white-and-red checkered napkin.

Komaru squealed. "Oh my god, this is just like that movie with the dogs! So this must be a restaurant... This is a fancy table, yeah? You _are_ playing dinner after all, huh!"

"Komaru, stop," Touko groaned. "Next thing you'll say is: _'Touko, let's stop by and enjoy a date!'_ or something stupid like that."

Komaru's eyes widened. "Huh? How'd you know... Nevermind that! Let's exactly do that."

"No!"

"Aw, come on!"

Ignoring Touko's death glare, she plopped down on one of the crates the waiter Monokuma Kid was showing. He turned towards Touko and showed a crate opposite of Komaru, across the "dinner table". Touko rolled her eyes.

"Okay fine," she groaned as she sat on the crate, arms crossed. "Let's stay a few minutes. Then let's go."

"What's the point of staying just a few minutes?" Komaru laughed. The kid bowed slightly and slipped behind a small curtain. "Let's relax. This area is usually safe." He returned with shabby-looking menus, the dark red velvet peeled in some parts, that he put on their table with an unusual gentleness for kids of his kind.

"Komaru, it's nightime." Touko hissed through gritted teeth. "I _hate_ the dark and if we stay longer than ten minutes I will _hate_ you."

Komaru looked at her worriedly, clutching the menu with her fingerless gloves. "You'll hate me? A-ah, no, that's not what I wanted to say..." She stammered, looked the child at her left. Touko tried to ignore the way her heart tightened when Komaru looked at her with puppy eyes. "Is the candle on the table not enough? Should we get some more?"

Touko sighed. "Just one is fine. It's already warm, and having one more candle would make me sweat."

"Is it the way back home that worries you?" Komaru asked. "I- I have plenty of glowsticks, and this area is fairly well-lit, and I know most of the apartments here are safe so we can sleep in a room while we wait for sunrise if it's too bad..." She added hastily.

Touko wasn't sure when they started calling the hotel they usually stayed in "home", but in the mess that was Towa City, the mess that was Touko's life up to this point, hearing Komaru saying it made her whole body warm up and tingle. She chased the strange feeling away but it kept bubbling inside her and pressing against the sides of her stomach like butterflies. Or maybe it was the eagerness and care Komaru showed at the drop of a hat all the time to make Touko feel safer, even though she was as scared as Touko was. Or maybe it was the way Komaru's eyebrows would quirk in concern, her teeth biting her lower lip attractiv- maddeningly. But whatever it was- she gave in. She sighed and uncrossed her arms, wondering why the hell her cheeks felt so warm or why the fabric of her uniform suddenly clung to her skin so irritatingly.

"Okay, okay..." Her lips twitched in what she hoped looked like a smile. "Just half an hour, then."

Komaru smiled, no, beamed at her and Touko genuinely felt like she had to blink, blinded. Komaru had opened the menu and raised eyebrows every now and then, while the Monokuma Kid at their left didn't move a muscle.  
Touko opened the menu and found a real restaurant menu, except scribbled with the usual children graffiti covering every flat or non-flat available surface in the city. The wax coating the plastic pages was so thick Touko would bet they could make another candle by scraping some of it; the names of the dishes were unreadable.

"What will you get?" Komaru asked, her voice high and playful. Touko suspected she was having as much fun as the Monokuma Kid was having.

Deep down, maybe she was too.

"I haven't decided yet," she decided to go along for now. "Not like I can read what's written here."

"I'll have the italian pasta," Komaru nodded to the 'waiter'. "I heard it's really good in this restaurant."

"I'll get the same, I guess," Touko groaned. The Monokuma Kid nodded, took their menus and left behind the curtain again. "At least it's not kangaroo steak or something crazy like that."

"Hey, don't insult kangaroo steak! Poor kangaroos!"

"They're poor kangaroos because you're turning them into steaks, not because I'm insulting the steaks!"

They bantered for a little while, Touko soon forgetting the time limit she set up earlier. The air was warm, the stars twinkled brighter when seen from this secluded area. Komaru's exaggerated 'eeeeeeh's and 'ooooooh's as they exchanged idiocies filled the air.

Then the 'waiter' came back, this time holding a silver kettle and...

"Cup Noodles??" Komaru exclaimed.

The Monokuma Kid gently put the instant ramen in front of them and lifted the kettle. Steam softly escaped its beak.

"So the italian pasta is Cup Noodles, huh..." Komaru muttered, her eyes narrowed as she started peeling the lid off.

"Komaru!! Don't open it!!" Touko hissed.

"Huh?"

She let go of the flavor packet she was holding.

"You can't possibly be thinking of eating this?!"

"Um... Yeah, I am?"

"You can't! We can't!" Touko exclaimed.

"Why not?"

"Because- I was expecting-"

"Actual italian pasta?" Komaru quirked an eyebrow. "He's a kid. When you play restaurant you can't really cook so you end up with throwing whatever toys you had in a beach bucket and stir like your life depends on it. I'm actually impressed he got real food, to be honest."

"I- I didn't know that," Touko admitted, gazing down. "But that's besides the point."

"Oh? That's what every kid did in their childhood."

Touko's eyes narrowed dangerously. "Unless you forgot, some kids didn't usually play these kind of games during their childhood."

Komaru pulled a face. "Then you have all the time in the world to live your childhood now, Touko. Nothing is stopping you. Why can't we enjoy some of that while it's hot? I'm hungry!"

Case in point, Komaru's stomach growled loudly. The 'waiter' hadn't moved an inch, waiting docilely to pour the boiling water in their instant ramen. Touko let out a enraged groan and held her hands in front of her face as if she wanted to strangle Komaru.

"Are you so thick-headed that you want to both ring a bell and eat suspicious kids' food in the same evening?" She exclaimed. "Death doesn't give you two chances! What if it's a trap? What if it's poisoned? What if it explodes the second you open the lid? What if it's expired and give you massive diarrhea later on? Worse, what if it's shrimp-flavored instead of chicken?"

Komaru gasped. "You take that back. Shrimp clearly is the superior taste. Besides," she looked at the label, "it's vegetable-flavored. No idea which ones, though."

"Enough with the jokes, Komaru!" Touko tightened her fists on the table. "You enter right in the enemy's territory and you eat their food? What kinda hothead behavior is that?"

"I mean," Komaru began, pouting. "All of Towa City is enemy territory, and we've been eating things off the vending machines already. Also, it's just a game. That kid wouldn't hurt us."

"Fine. Then I'm not eating," Touko said, crossing her arms again and leaning back.

"C'mon," Komaru pleaded, fiddling with her fingerless gloves. "Let's play his game. They're still kids at heart!"

Touko let out a frustrated groan. "For the last time, I said no!"

The truth was, it wasn't worry about the food that was stopping her but rather, she didn't want to have a dinner this unromantic, even if it _was_ a pretend-dinner. A lady like her should be treated as such, like Byakuya-sama would. Komaru usually digs in, not paying attention or bothering to say Bon Appétit or whatever fancy it should be in this. Aaaah... Byakuya-sama speaking French... Byakuya-sama on his white horse... His servants running to please him... Komaru as his maid... Komaru bringing her food... Komaru smiling as Touko would compliment her... Komaru thumbing the corner of Touko's mouth because of a stubborn grain of rice... Komaru gazing deep in her eyes-- wait... Komaru?!

Ahem.

Cough.

And just as she coughed, her stomach, that traitorous bastard, gave a long groan that seemed to stretch on forever.

Silence.

And then Komaru's laughter cutting her breath away.

"See?" She managed between laughs. "Even your stomach thinks the same as me!"

"Sh-shut up!" Touko protested vainly. She wrapped her arms around her, her stomach bubbling with both hunger and that strange warm feeling she got all the time these days. Probably a fever.

"It's only reacting to the unearthly one you pulled earlier!"

"Alright, sorry," Komaru apologized, a toothy grin plastered on her face as she wiped a tear away. "Look, I'm really hungry. So if there really is a trap, I'll be ready," she added as she showed her megaphone, loaded and packed. "Like earlier."

Touko gave a humorless chuckle. "So will I." She got the taser out once again, and looked as Komaru peeled the cap slowly.

Nothing happened.

Only the grey-looking freeze-dried noodles sat in the cup-- no bomb, no dangerous-looking switch, no bugs, no blood- only food. They both breathed again, and Touko opened her own. It was the same. Usually, Touko would feel self-conscious about being this cautious with things; yet Komaru didn't seem to look too bothered by it. Living- no, surviving in Towa City did involve being paranoid, so maybe that was why. Or maybe she was used to Touko and didn't mind a little (a lot) of her antics. Yeah.

Probably the former, yeah.

As Komaru slowly separated her chopsticks ("They have to be perfectly even; what's the point if they aren't?") and while the 'waiter' poured the boiling water on their instant ramen, Touko pondered.

How would Komaru react?

How would she react to Touko's strange feelings?

Touko wasn't an idiot. She didn't write eighty romance best-selling novels for nothing. As much as she tried to lie to herself, gambled with her feelings and skirted around the thoughts running in her head - she could understand love. She could understand she fell in love. With Komaru.

But maybe, she thought, this was the first time this happened to her.

Yet a thousand questions and insecurities rolled around against her skull: could it really be love? It might be intense affection, after all. Komaru was her _first_ best friend, after all. Having Byakuya-sama and Komaru hold as much importance in her heart was an unprecedented thing in Touko's life.

Dreaming of kissing Komaru, too, messed with her head too much to be healthy, especially when the girl she dreamt of kissing was instead dreaming of nightmarish things and worrying about far more complicated and more important stuff. Like saving not-so-innocent human lives.

Argh. Maybe things were too complicated. Maybe, she thought, lamely, sorting out her feelings now would be like trying to untangle her noodles. Poor metaphor, but would do. In the meantime, focusing on their date for tonight would be okay.

Date...?

"Want to reenact the spaghetti scene in the movie with the dogs?" Komaru joked.

"I don't know which scene you're talking about. Also, no." Touko retorted coldly.

Komaru chuckled and looked at Touko with this peculiar gaze of hers, half-amused and half-fond, that narrowed her eyes a bit. With her face basked in the candlelight, a smile on her lips, her cocky grin, she looked beautiful. Maybe reenacting that stupid scene really wasn't such a bad idea...

Touko pretended to find the instant ramen suddenly very tasty and dug her nose in the cup to ignore her pounding heart and burning cheeks. But most of all, to avoid Komaru's green, deep eyes. She wasn't having none of this today.

"Bon ape the tit," Komaru said.

Touko groaned.

At her left, the waiter Monokuma kid giggled.

**Author's Note:**

> Kusu kusu.


End file.
